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A delicious frosting of “delay and divert.”

Gourmandistan has nothing against salt—we use it liberally on and in all kinds of things, and enjoy a nice salt crust on a steak or roasted chicken. What we don’t like is big business hiding it—especially when also hiding how crappy processed food really is. This story deals with how the food industry wants to divert attention from a reasonable request to cut the amount of salt in food, and why they don’t want to do it. Here’s a sample from the article:

Beyond its own taste, salt also masks bitter flavors and counters a side effect of processed food production called “warmed-over flavor,” which, the scientists said, can make meat taste like “cardboard” or “damp dog hair.” Salt also works in tandem with fat and sugar to achieve flavors that grip the consumer and do not let go — an allure the industry has recognized for decades. “Once a preference is acquired,” a top scientist at Frito-Lay wrote in a 1979 internal memorandum, “most people do not change it, but simply obey it.”